Detained individuals to enjoy right to information, plea bargaining

A unanimous agreement between the government and opposition will lead to the introduction of plea-bargaining in criminal cases that carry a minimum prison sentence of four years.

This amendment means that an individual can plead guilty during the compilation of evidence before going to trial with the defense and prosecution negotiating the punishment.

The various amendments were approved yesterday evening at committee stage.

Parliamentary secretary for justice Owen Bonnici welcomed the Opposition's input saying that partisan politics were put aside and constructive criticism and proposals were put forward.

All amendments received the support of both sides.

The amendments are the beginning of the justice reform and in brief will introduce plea bargaining, an arrested person's right to information, increasing incentives for individuals to blow the whistle on criminal matters that go beyond the workplace and the harshening of penalties of sexual assault and abuse on children.

In the latter, some of the prison sentences doubled while others increased by an average of three years.

According to Bonnici, the incentive for an individual to choose to plead guilty during the compilation of evidence was the negotiation of the punishment.

"This cannot be done today, even if a person wants to admit to a crime. Criticism was mostly raised by embassies, which questioned why a foreigner who wanted to plead guilty would have to spend years in Malta before receiving his sentence," Bonnici said, adding that the system was widely used abroad. "We are not reinventing the wheel."

The amendments will also strengthen the rights of individuals who have been arrested or under investigation - in line with 2010 EU directives but never implemented in Malta.

As from 4 June, investigating and police officers will have the obligation of disclosure: the arrested person's right to information the police have on him.

Upon arrest or detainment, the police must now inform the person of his five rights: the right of access to a lawyer, entitlement to legal aid, right to know on what he is being suspected, the right to interpretation and translation and the right to remain silent.

These rights would also be handed to the individual in writing.

"The right to information is a revolutionary procedural right that will strengthen an individual's right in a democratic state where rule of law is sovereign. This is a major leap for Malta... but not enough," Bonnici said.

A third amendment is the introduction of incentives for accomplices in a crime to come forward and reveal the crime. Whereas the whistleblower act is related to the workplace, this amendment covers all criminal acts whether it's theft, murder, violence and so forth.

"A witness who is an accomplice to a criminal act and ready to speak out will be put into a witness protection programme. He will also be considered as a witness and can testify in court at any stage during the compilation of evidence. The innocent martyrs are very few and incentives are needed," the junior minister said.

Based on what the court decides, the individual could enjoy a reduced sentence or a pardon.

Minor amendments to the law will, for the first time, consider communication by the Registrar sent by email as an official notification. Times for notification have been changed, widening the time when notifications could be sent.